PrimeQuest: Speed Trap
by MatrixOfWumbo
Summary: The search for Optimus Prime brings Windblade and company to the Speed Planet Velocitron, where they're about to meet the war head on... A sequel to PrimeQuest: The Vision.
1. Chapter 1

**_At the height of the Great War between the Autobots and Decepticons, the two sides lost their leaders in a fateful space bridge accident. At least, that is what was believed. Then one night a Camien priestess named Windblade received a vision of Optimus Prime's whereabouts. With her friend Chromia and the wayward Autobot Trailbreaker, the crew of the_ Stormfall _scour the heavens for the clues to unlocking Windblade's vision and finding the Last Prime..._**

 **PrimeQuest: The Speed Trap  
Part 1**

Windblade was going to die.

That's what was going through her head at any rate, as the _Stormfall_ cut through the stardust of the Bevel Nebula, beyond which lay the Velocitron System.

"You're impossible!"

"You don't think I know my own ship?"

Chromia and Trailbreaker had started bickering about the route to the Speed Planet after their stopover on Kol V. That was four days ago. Trailbreaker was concerned about a debris field on the other side of the Nebula that he would rather navigate around. Chromia would have none of it.

"I've been navigating rough passages for years, barfly! There's nothing different about this time!"

"That's water! When's the last time you did it in space? There's a whole other dimension to consider out here!"

Windblade groaned. "Can't we at least wait until we're out of the clouds to see what this asteroid belt looks like?"

Trailbreaker checked the maps. "We won't have a lot of time once we've established visual. It would be easier to head up and over it."

"That will take at least another day of travel. I want to get to Velocitron _before_ we run out of fuel," Chromia sniffed.

As if on cue, a rock roughly half the size of the ship coursed out of the rusty haze on the starboard side of the ship. In one quick motion the nebula pulled back to reveal a broad field of meteoroids and asteroids, zooming through a break in the star clouds. This was the Bevel Expanse, where Speedia VII once orbited its distant star. A massive projectile broke up the planet thousands of years ago, leaving a cloud of its remains (and the remains of the planet) cycling endlessly around the Velocitron System like a wall.

Chromia geared the ship down into manual control to behind easing the ship through the belt.

"I'll tell you what Trailbreaker, why don't you go outside and provide supporting fire in case any of these rocks get too close for comfort?"

"I love any plan that involves you two not being in the same room," Windblade said happily. "Come on Trailbreaker, we've got a photon cannon to the rear that would do nicely."

* * *

"You know she partially agrees with you, right?"

Trailbreaker snarled, holding his head as they trudged across the top of the ship in their magnaboots. "That woman doesn't agree to anything!"

"If she felt that confident she wouldn't have sent us out here. Not that she'll ever admit as much."

Trailbreaker took aim at a moderately sized rock swooping past the wing. "You've known her a while?"

Windblade drew her blade and took out a small projectile over the front window. "I've known her since University, but I also know she's older than I am. She doesn't talk about what she used to do before she trained to operate boats."

The _Stormfall_ jerked into a 45 degree rotation to just miss a large meteoroid to the side.

"Primus!" Trailbreaker shouted. "What do they teach in boating school?"

It went on like that for some time; Windblade with sword in hand, Trailbreaker hefting his cannon, and Chromia at the helm. When it seemed to be breaking up, they went inside for a rest.

"Where did you learn to fly?" Trailbreaker asked in awe as they came back inside. "That's not the work of a sea dog."

"A story for another time, perhaps," Chromia muttered. "That was a lifetime ago."

Before anyone could follow up the ship's sirens began blaring across the bridge. They saw the problem immediately. A huge asteroid, perhaps three times the size of the ship, was bearing down from above.

"That ain't good," Chromia said meekly. "Windblade, go down to the engine room and - Windblade?"

She was already at the airlock when she heard Chromia calling her name. She clutched Stormfall at her hip and felt it hum. She had an idea, though she wasn't sure where it was coming from. Jetting out to the space between the asteroid and the ship she unsheathed the violet blade and held it to her chest. Something instinctual clicked inside her, and she wound her arms back. Focusing on the boulder with her mind she swung with all her might. And then some. From her spark she felt an outpouring of energy through her arm and up through the blade, causing it to flare white and extend in length. She felt her brain swim in her head, and as she lost consciousness she felt the blade make contact.

With a flash like thunder Chromia and Trailbreaker watched aghast as the massive space rock split in two, the halves passing harmlessly on either side of the ship. Then Trailbreaker cried out. They saw Windblade floating motionless in the void.

* * *

Windblade opened her eyes and found herself back aboard the _Stormfall_.

"She's up Chromia."

"Oh thank Solus. You didn't miss much. After you saved our tailpipes we made it out of the belt without issue."

"Yeah, thanks to Chromia's ace flying!" Trailbreaker exclaimed.

"Ace enough to almost kill my City Speaker," Chromia said glumly.

"I mean it Chromia, I don't know any Autobot who could make it though the Expanse with all their parts in place."

 _I should knock myself out more often_ , Windblade thought to herself, noticing how her condition seemed to have ended the argument. She was still rather concerned about how it happened in the first place.

"Where are we now?"

"Just an FTL jog through the system to Velocitron," Chromia replied. "It's been smooth sailing so far."

After a while at this speed, Windblade sighted a sliver of faded red out the front window of the ship. Chromia took the ship out of jump speed and approached the shape, now growing as it moved into position around the sun. A lonely planet, Speedia III, where ages ago two separate generations of colonists had journeyed to escape conflict on Cybertron. The Speed Planet; Velocitron.

A voice crackled on the comm. "Attention Camien spacecraft, this is Cloudraker at the Velocitron Superorbital Security Checkpoint. Please identify, over."

From their limited field of view within the shadow of the planet they could see a large satellite glinting in space. Many points of light around it revealed the presence of space ships, probably military craft, holding the position.

"This is the _Stormfall_ , civilian vessel, over," Chromia responded. She looked at Trailbreaker. "What's with the lockdown?

"What is the nature of your business, over?"

"Let me talk to them," Trailbreaker said. "I know the jargon."

"This is Trailbreaker of the 113th Artillery Brigade. I have two civilians on board, one experiencing severe fatigue."

Windblade grabbed her arm. It wasn't _that_ severe.

"Requesting entry for extended period, over."

They waited in silence for a moment.

"Confirmed, _Stormfall_. Prepare for entry, over."

Chromia activated the reentry shields and began the descent to the planet.

Beneath them stretched miles and miles of roads, curving and spiraling across the surface. In the elbows of the banks clustered dense cities. Few lights had yet turned on in the early morning.

"Well Windblade," Chromia said turning back to look at the Speaker, "you wanted to see the universe."

"Uh-huh, and it looks like we really stepped in it too!" Trailbreaker shouted, pointing to the port side.

Out of the morning gloom came a gigantic shape, like a pyramid, but with the pointed end hovering above the ground.

"What is that thing?"

"It's a Decepticon War World, and it's the last thing we need."


	2. Chapter 2

Wildrider was having a good day.

He and the boys hadn't had this much fun since the Killway. A whole planet of roads to rip up and suckers to run off.

"When's that air strike happenin'? Haven't killed somethin' in forever."

"I can't stands this waiting fellas," Breakdown tittered to himself. "We could be ambushed at any moment."

Deadend sniffed. " _We're_ the ambush Breakdown, stop leaking."

"If anybody ambushes me, I'll just ambush 'em right back!"

"That's not how ambushes work, Dragstrip."

Dead End sighed. The Stunticons were stationed at key points along the Velocitronian road network to mop up anybody the air raid spooked out of hiding. It wasn't particularly fulfilling. The War World would destroy most of the area, what point was there in running? At best they'd find a few half-dead fools. And the other half didn't last much longer when Wildrider found them. Or even worse -

"What'd I tell you boys about keeping this channel clear?"

The voice boomed over the comms with utter contempt. At once everyone shut up. Even the wind died down, Dead End thought.

"B-Boss?" Dragstrip stammered. "Are you down here?"

"Naw, Dragstrip. I trust you enough not to screw up as simple a job as this. I know you boys respect me too much to let me down. That right, boys?"

"Yessir Motormaster," they all said quickly.

At the base of the War World, a small, thin bot moved between the shadows.

"Delta Leader, this is Delta 3, I'm in position."

"Copy Delta 3. Deltas 1,2,4 check in."

"Check."

"Check."

"Check."

"Delta Leader to all points, Operation Thunderdome is go."

* * *

Windblade blinked. "A War World?"

"A floating fortress. One of four. Or was it five? Anyway, they're all commanded by brothers, a family of rich psychopaths who joined up with the Decepticons to 'tear down the establishment' or some scrap."

"What is this one doing here?"

"Um I'm gonna say 'war.' Ow! Hey!"

"Chromia, stop hitting Trailbreaker and put us down. They aren't looking for us. They don't even know why we're here. It should be fine."

But even as they touched down on the Speed Planet for the first time, a wave of ships dispatched from the dark prism.

Chromia whispered to Trailbreaker. "I guess that explains the tightened security. Your badge gets two civilians into an active war zone?"

"I don't think they were Autobots. Speedia was always a low priority system for the brass back on Cybertron. But I also know Velocitronians are usually ones to keep all four wheels on the ground. I'll have to sniff around when we get to the capital."

A cluster of the points of light from the space station descended to intercept the Decepticons. Bursts of red and green began puncturing the dawn as the two factions clashed.

"War." Windblade softly spoke the word.

Chromia saw her watch transfixed. "Listen Windblade. You're following the path of a Prime. You're gonna see all sorts of the bad in this universe. You can't let it get to you."

The speaker turned and nodded. "You're right. We should get inside. Also; let's not use the P-Word when we're not onboard the _Stormfall_. Discretion is of the utmost importance."

"You call the shots when we're on the ground, I just fly."

The trio was disturbed by the sudden arrival of sirens.

"You there! You have no idea how lucky you are that you got through the gate when you did!"

A blocky ambulance came barreling towards them, transforming into a broad-shouldered medic. "Where's the patient?" She asked.

Windblade raised her hand politely. "I'm the one he was talking about, but I'm really fine-"

"I'll be the judge of that. Call me Red Alert. I'll look at you when we're inside. Right now we have to get you down below before the bombing run."

Chromia's eyes flashed. "A bombing run? Here? When?"

Red Alert pointed at the wall of smoke advancing towards them. The fighters who had escaped the Velocitronian fleet were bearing down on the landing strip and the zone all around it, carpet bombs streaming from the craft.

"Now!"


	3. Chapter 3

In the bunkers below, Velocitronians huddled together, eyes fixed on a series of monitors displaying the War World. They felt the ground shake as the bombers passed overhead, then an earsplitting crack as the ceiling shattered. Light and debris poured in, and so did a peculiar orb, warm and orange, and huge. On impact it vanished, spilling its contents into the bunker. Once they were sure the roar of the bombers was gone, the onlookers crept up to the landing site.

There was a space ship they didn't recognize, along with a medic they did recognize, the city's chief doctor Red Alert. And she was with three foreigners, one still sparking orange from his hands.

* * *

Windblade hurt all over. But she was alive. They all were, because of-

"Trailbreaker!"

"I'm okay..."

The others wheezed as they came around. "Primus! We're alive!" Red Alert cried. "You saved us Autobot! You're really something."

Trailbreaker himself was stood like a statue in the middle of the carnage, a weary smile on his face.

"Did we make it? Also I'm having trouble putting my arms down. Um, doctor, what did you say your name was? I may need some help."

"You can call me whatever you want," she said with palpable admiration.

"Caminus on a cracker," Chromia groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Okay. Nurse Clingy can look at my friends. Can someone else tell me what the hell is going on on this planet?"

"We're watching Operation Thunderdome," someone in the crowd answered.

 _Helpful_ , she muttered.

"Is Operation Thunderdome where Decepticons blow you all up?"

"No," the bot said, stepping forward, "It's the retaliation. We're about to win the war."

* * *

Motormaster watched the smoke billow over the horizon. Things were going well. The Velocitronians were holed up underground, surrender should come within the day.

It was at this point that the flares went up.

Around the War World five blue lights glided lazily into the air. The atmosphere on the deck of the pyramid began to crackle. They were under attack!

"Get the fleet back here now!" Motormaster barked.

But it was too late. A barrier of light enclosed the entire War World. It was a storm shield, a nigh impenetrable wall from both sides. Usually a fortress would employ one of these as a siege tactic. The Velocitronians must have repurposed one, reversed the polarity to externalize the field.

That's what Motormaster remembered from the security briefings anyway. He was never good with the technical stuff.

Swarms of Velocitronian craft uncloaked now and cut off the retreating Decepticons, driving them to ground or forcing them to crash into the storm shield. It was a massacre out there. And he was the one who'd have to brief the Commander...

* * *

The people cheered as they watched the dome surround the War World.

"You've cut off the main fleet from their base. That's pretty smart."

The red bot who had first addressed Chromia was standing with her now waiting outside of Red Alert's surgical suite. "Our city's Titan told us about it. It was part of an old structure elsewhere on the planet. It took a lot of doing to retrieve it and get it operational."

Chromia raised an eyebrow. "A Titan? I thought you guys descended from the First Exodus."

"A lot of us are. But some of us came over on Navitas during the Second. There was plenty of room, and a lot less hassle. They built this place around him, made it our capital way back."

" _This_ is Delta?"

"You were expecting something more impressive?"

"I was expecting something above ground. You speedy types aren't tunnelers."

He snickered. "We haven't done all our tricks yet."

The door opened, and out came Trailbreaker, looking largely none the worse for wear.

"Hey, barfly," Chromia smiled at him. "Looks like I'm not rid of you yet. Funny how you couldn't bust out your party trick in the middle of that asteroid belt."

"Well I think you managed fine without it," he retorted. "Besides. Fields that big take a lot out of me. You noticed the landing I managed."

He looked at the battle on the screens. "Speaking of ace pilots, where did racers learn to fly?"

"The Autobots couldn't spare the troops to help us, but they did kickstart our air force. The volunteers took to it famously. You probably talked to my brother up there. I'm Fastlane, by the way."

"I'm Trailbreaker. Do the Autobots know you have a War World on your hands?"

"I can't imagine they do. By the time the Pyramid of Madness came we had been out of contact with them for over a year. We've been fighting the Decepticons for the last 8 months."

"Out of contact? They just left you?"

"Admiral Sentinel said that he would put our leader in touch with someone once the Autobots had reorganized in the wake of Optimus Prime's death."

Trailbreaker slapped his forehead. "Of course he did. Anything out of arm's reach is too much effort for Sentinel."

The crowd swelled to a roar as the aerial cameras focused on some vehicles cruising out of the battlefield at top speed. At the front was one of the sleekest cars Trailbreaker and Chromia had ever seen.

"That's Delta Crew, the team who lead this attack," Fastlane explained. "They're celebrities around here. And that - he gestured to the front car - is Override, the leader of Velocitron. Around here speed equals authority, and nobody's got more of either than her."

"Then I think we should request and audience with her." It was Windblade, with Red Alert in tow, finished her evaluation.

"If you have any more blackouts in the Speedia system, look me up. I really ought to stay with you for post-evaluation, but if you insist you're in a hurry-"

"We are." All three said at once.

"I don't think meeting with Lady Override is a good idea right now," Fastlane said. "She's awful busy with the war effort. But I work in her office. What brings you to Velocitron anyway?"

 _Now comes the tricky part_ , thought Windblade. "I'm with the Caminus Galactic History Society."

Chromia looked away to avoid laughing.

"We were hoping to learn about the Iconography of your planet's culture. Specifically, we were interested in the red lightning bolt that is often used as a symbol for Velocitron."

Fastlane looked at her, and thought to himself. "Hmm. Velocitronian society doesn't spend a lot of time rooted in the past. Always moving forward, right? But our grand archives have a library. That might be a good place to start."


End file.
